... Your scenario about the deep pan does not hold water as the crossmember sits behind the pan so the pan takes the hit first. If the hit is hard enough which I have seen; the crossmember was not an issue.
Mike, if you are driving backwards at high speed in serious off-road conditions, that crossmember could save the pan!! It would hit the rock and break it into little pieces to save the pan.
Lesson? Don't drive forward in the dirt.
Last edited: